A boot band is used, for example, to fasten a boot that covers the transmission of an automobile so as to prevent inside grease from flowing out of the transmission and past the boot, and to prevent water and foreign matter from proceeding past the boot and going into the transmission. Also, a boot band can be wound around a member to fasten the member, and therefore a pair of tool claws are provided on the boot band so as to enable fastening by use of a fastening tool.
FIGS. 9 and 10 show a first conventional boot band 1 described in U.S. Pat. No. Re. 33744, and FIGS. 11 and 12 show a second conventional boot band 2 described in Japanese Patent No. 3001266. Each of the boot bands 1 and 2 includes a band body 3 made of sheet metal, and each is wound like a ring around a fastened member in such a way that the fastened member is inserted into the boot band, so as to be fastened. The band body 3 is wound around the member to be fastened so that the band body 3 has an outer overlapping portion 4 and an inner overlapped portion 5.
In the first conventional boot band 1, a first tool claw 6 is formed on the outer overlapping portion 4, and a second tool claw 7, which is paired with the first tool claw, is formed on the inner overlapped portion 5. Engagement holes 8 and 9 are formed in the outer overlapping portion 4 in area of the outer overlapping portion 4 that is closer to the end of the boot band 1 than it is to the first tool claw 6. The engagement hole 8 is longer than the engagement hole 9, and is also used as a tacking hole for tacking the band body 3. A tacking hook 10, and engagement claws 11 and 12 are arranged sequentially—from the second tool claw 7—on the inner overlapped portion 5 of the boot band 1 in the longitudinal direction of the band body 3.
As shown in FIG. 10, the boot band 1 is wound like a ring, and then the second tool claw 7 and the tacking hook 10 are inserted in the engagement hole 8 of the outer overlapping portion 4. Thereafter, a fastening tool (a fastening tool 15 is shown in FIG. 12) is hooked onto the pair of tool claws 6 and 7, and the tool claws 6 and 7 are fastened so as to reduce the distance between the tool claws 6 and 7, so that the diameter of the ring-like band body is reduced. The Arrows F in FIG. 10 show the directions in which the tool claws 6 and 7 are moved as a result of the fastening. As a result of this fastening, the engagement claw 11 enters into and is engaged with the engagement hole 8, and the engagement claw 12 enters into and is engaged with the engagement hole 9, so that fastening of the boot band is achieved while its reduced diameter is maintained.
At this time, the outer end of the outer overlapping portion 4 (the portion where the engagement hole 9 is located) is not in contact with the inner overlapped portion 5, and therefore, the end of the outer overlapping portion 4 is pressed—from the outer periphery side—toward the center of the ring (in the direction shown by the arrow G in FIG. 10). While this pressing is maintained, the engagement claw 12 is engaged with the engagement hole 9 for final fastening.
In a second conventional boot band 2, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, a first tool claw 21 is formed atop the outer end side of the outer overlapping portion 4, and a second tool claw 22, which is paired with the first tool claw 21, is formed on the inner overlapped portion 5. Also, engagement holes 23, 24, and 25 are formed—sequentially and in the longitudinal direction of the band body 3 from the first tool claw 21 side—in the outer overlapping portion 4, and engagement claws 26, 27, and 28, which correspond to the engagement holes 23, 24 and 25, are formed on the inner overlapped portion 5.
The second tool claw 22 is press-molded to project outward in the radial direction, and therefore an opening 22a, which is opened toward the first tool claw 21, is formed in the second tool claw 22. Meanwhile, a flat terminal 29 that extends toward the end of the outer overlapping portion 4 is formed on the outer overlapping portion 4 and at a place that is closer to the end of the outer overlapping portion 4 than is the first tool claw 21. This terminal 29 enters into the second tool claw 22 through the opening 22a. 
As shown in FIG. 12, to fasten the second conventional boot band 2, the band body 3 is made into a ring-like form and is wrapped around a member (not shown in FIG. 12) to be fastened. Under this condition, a pair of claw parts 15a and 15b of a fastening tool 15 are pressed in the longitudinal direction against, and locked with, the tool claws 21 and 22, respectively, and the tool claws 21 and 22 are respectively pressed in the directions shown by the arrows F, so as to reduce the distance between the tool claws 21 and 22 so as to reduce the distance between the tool claws 21 and 22, so that the diameter of the ring-like band body is reduced. In this fastening, the terminal 29 moves in the direction shown by the left-side arrow F and enters into the opening 22a while the engagement claws 26, 27, and 28 become engaged with the engagement holes 23, 24, and 25, respectively, resulting in a fastened condition.    Patent Document 1: U.S. Pat. No. Re. 33744.    Patent Document 2: U.S. Pat. No. 3,001,266.